Wreck of the Day
by Applelicious
Summary: Tyler thinks Evelyn knows what their secret is. Evy also thinks she knows the secret of the sons of Ipswich: they're gay. TyOc
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: Does it seem likely that I'd own any of this? Therefore it goes without saying, I own squat.

"You're not awake yet? Class is going to start in about ten minutes! Wake up Evy!"

I cracked an eyelid open and looked at my frantic roommate- a perky ball of energy before eight o'clock, who was running this way and that way, getting ready for class. Slowly sitting up, I rubbed my eyes. "Relax, your immaculate record won't be tainted by my being late to class."

"Of course it will! The headmaster personally asked me to make sure that you made it to class on time! And I refuse to shrink from my duty!" my beloved roommate vehemently pronounced as she threw my uniform at me.

I loved Julie, really I did, but the girl could be a tad uptight, " I don't think that he'll hold it against you. But," I quickly added as she gave me the most venomous glare she could, "I'll be quick." I put on my uniform fairly fast- it took a mere five minutes and this was before I'd had any caffeine yet - and went to brush my teeth.

Grabbing my arm as soon as I came out of the bathroom, Julie who had been waiting at the door very forcedly pushed me towards class. We entered the room seconds before the professor and barely had time to sit in the first row before he made quick work of attendance and started lecturing. History was usually one of my favorite subjects but lack of sleep and professor Garth's monotone droning did me in and I started nodding off about five minutes into the class.

Half an hour into the class and thirty minutes of my trying to stay awake later, Julie poked me in the side…once more and finally managed to snap me out of it, just as Reid Garwin decided to make his entrance.

"Mister Garwin, how nice of you to finally join us."

"Sorry," he said with a shrug, "had some things to take care of," he finished with a wicked grin that had half the girls in the room sighing and fantasizing about the meaning behind the words.

"Please stay after class so that we may discuss whatever was so important that you simply had to miss a half-hour of my lecture," the professor quipped before going back to the lesson.

Reid only smiled as he took the stairs two at a time to find his usual place next to Tyler Sims. I had to hand it to the boy, nothing fazed him. I looked over at Julie to ask for her notes, since mine were half-scribbled words that turned into squiggles where I'd started to nod off, and noticed for the first time the far-away look in her eyes as she followed Reid's trajectory.

Frowning I looked back and forth between the two and it dawned on me for he first time that my shy, perfectionist, goody-goody roommate had a crush on the school's resident bad boy. I lightly slapped my forehead, why hadn't I noticed before. Adoration seemed to pour out of her eyes as she kept looking at him. Finally I brought her back to reality with a nudge.

I turned slightly and looked back at Reid through the corner of my eye sighing in turn. My friend could not have chosen a worst candidate. An equally bad candidate she could have, I though, as I let my eyes slide to the right to find Tyler, and then corrected myself as my eyes landed and the very taken Pogue and Caleb. Could have been worst, I kept telling myself. It really was none of my business but I didn't want to see my friend get hurt. Though she was too much of a sticker for the rules for my taste she was the first to befriend me when I transferred from a regional school during sophomore year.

My eyes returned to Reid once more, only this time he was looking back with that grin of his in place. I smiled accepting I'd been caught looking and turned slightly in my seat so that wouldn't be tempted to turn and look again. I glanced back at Julie to see that she was also looking at me; maybe I needed to work on my subtlety. She sent a questioning glance my way, but I only shook my head in response. I'd try to get it out of her later. If nothing else, she was consistent – she always did go for the nearly impossible.

She wasn't bad looking by any means; there was no such thing as an unattractive girl at Spencer Academy. The school seemed to chose its students based on looks as well as academic performance. Julie was the type of girl who could eat like a horse and never gain a pound, I knew because I saw her eat everyday and she never went near an exercise tape or a gym. Naturally slender and blonde, she had some of the prettiest gray eyes I'd ever seen, a well-proportioned body, and she was intelligent to boot. Maybe there was a chance for her…if she'd just let loose once in a while and showed the side of her that wasn't such a stick in the mud.

The bell rang and brought me out of my reverie. I gathered my books and dodged Julie's questions with a promise that I would explain my thoughts to her at lunch.

I walked to my next class, study hall, thinking about the nap I'd be able to wedge between my classes. I found my usual secluded spot in the school's immense library, plopped my books down at _my_ table, and immediately rested my head on my arms. I needed at least ten hours of sleep every night in order to function properly. Scientific improbability, probably, but it was undisputable.

I couldn't fall asleep, strangely enough, but I kept my head down to dissuade others from interrupting my quiet time. My thoughts went back to Reid and Julie's attraction to the boy. Reid, and his cohorts, seemed to come right out of the pages of an Abercrombie catalog, so I could understand an initial attraction, but had she not been in the same classes as the guy since freshman year? Did she not know that he was modern day Don Juan and to be avoided at all cost?

What a hypocrite I was, being also guilty of admiring him, but the difference laid in the fact that I knew him for what he was and did not harbor any fantasies, unlike many of the female populace at Spencer. There was no harm in admiring art if the opportunity arose but that was as far as I'd be willing to go. And I needed to find out if Julia though the same or if I needed to stock up on Kleenex boxes. Maybe I was being harsh, I only knew Reid by sight and reputation after all.

I heard someone approaching and decided to ignore whoever it was. But the footsteps stopped and two or more of the chairs at my table protesting being moved. Foreign knees bumped mine and I didn't really have a choice but acknowledge who had dared to interrupt me while I was thinking on "grave matters."

I rubbed my eyes slightly and looked to see who it was. Speak of the devil…it was Reid and his constant sidekick.

He stared, so I stared right back. Boys were never something I felt I needed to be nervous over.

The silence was thickening and I was getting tired of his attitude, he was the one who'd come to me after all. "Did you want something?"

A slow smile spread across his face and I wondered how much trouble I'd find myself in.

I looked to Tyler to see if he'd speak up but he simply shrugged and rubbed his lips as though trying not to smile.

I responded as anyone else would and raised an eyebrow in inquiry.

TBC

A/N: Short first chappie, but this just had to be written it's been playing with my mind and just demanded to be put into words. Review as always greatly appreciated. Also the rating may change in later chapters, haven't decided on that point yet, but if I do I'll let you know a chapter before.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: Of Confusion and Boys

I watched the student body hurry towards their classes as the bell signifying the end of lunch rang. It was a perfect autumn day in New England and I wasn't planning on letting it go to waste. I quickly threw away what was left of my lunch and walked towards the gates of Spencer Academy. Looking back over my shoulder to make sure that no one was watching, I ran the last few steps to my car and got in. If there was one perk to living in the dorms of a prestigious boarding school that happened to be situated miles from any town, it was that my parents had had to procure me with a motor vehicle.

Once I was a distance away from the school, I opened the radio and cranked up the volume. I fiddled with the stations for a while looking for something other than rap or pop music but failed. I popped in a mix CD instead and let the lyrics glide over me as I got onto the highway and accelerated.

_Smells on the air_

_See there it's crushing the final impression_

_The stains on the paper_

_Where words fell like water_

_Unearth all the changes that never did matter_

_I think it's beginning to freeze here_

I rolled down the window and breathed in the fresh air; for the first time that day I was able to relax. Although Spencer Academy was a nice ornament on my academic profile, it wasn't somewhere I especially liked to be. I would have been happy staying at my previous school with its small classes and my two best friends, but my father had decided that only a prestigious boarding school, like Spencer, would do for the education of his daughter. Of course I was certain that my living at school and away from him had nothing to do with the decision.

_Here please forgive me_

_Could we escape all the bitterness piled upon bitterness_

_Held in the face of the things that I don't understand_

_Intellectualize over and over_

_This helplessness suits us_

_Funny how quiet has slipped to our corners_

_Worn all our edges away_

_You are watching breathing and baiting_

_Wanting and warming and cautiously waiting_

_For some simple signal to creep cross your conscience_

_Uncover redemption and oh did I mention_

_I carried you down to the St. Lawrence River_

_The banks running dirty the water's beginning to freeze here_

_Solid by morning_

_And I'll freeze here_

_Winter by morning_

Maybe I was being a hypocrite again because this living arrangement suited me just as well - I didn't want to intrude on his time and no longer had the patience to deal with him.

The song changed and it reminded me of Julie and the new developments in her life, or rather those that had occurred and I had only recently noticed, which also brought to mind the strange encounter in the library. I was still puzzled over the fact that they had come to sit with me in the first place. I'd gotten the feeling that they'd come to find out something, but they never got around to it. I was probably imagining things or maybe, if I was lucky, it meant that my work was already done for me and Reid was interested in Julie and only needed a nudge in the right direction.

Why was I worried? Julia hadn't asked for my help and neither had Reid. I was ready to meddle in other people's affairs without having even been asked. It was rather sad. A trip into Boston and away from the drama filled academy had long been overdue.

It took a while to find a parking spot, but the wasted hour was well worth it. I had reached my destination – Newbury Street, my favorite shopping district. Although I liked to think of myself as someone with some depth, it didn't mean that I didn't know how to enjoy some retail therapy now and again.

One of the fun parts of shopping was trying on clothes with a friend, without one it wasn't as much fun. I would have invited my roommate if I hadn't known in advance that her reaction would be something akin to – "Are you crazy? We can't skip class to shop!" After doing about as much shopping as a girl could on her own, I walked down to Tealuxe for a cup of tea. Theirs was the best and I made it a rule to go there whenever I was in Boston.

As I sat down, tea in hand, a chill raced down my spine and I looked around the small sitting area of the Café. My instincts were rarely wrong, but I felt a bit paranoid looking around as I was doing. I had the distinct impression that I was being followed but I couldn't be certain. I tried to shake off the nagging feeling and took a sip of tea before diving into my purse to find my copy of Sense and Sensibility.

I'd only been reading for a short time when someone decided to sit across from me, bumping my knees in the process. I looked up to tell whoever it was that I didn't want company but stopped short when I saw who it was.

You've got to be kidding me with the déjà vu, I though, but out loud I asked: "Are you stalking me?"

Tyler Sims said nothing but replied with a bashful smile.

I put my book away, scooted forward in my seat, and stared at the apparition before me. How in the world had this boy found me here? It explained the strange feeling I'd had, but as far as I had been able tell no one had followed me from school.

Once more he wasn't too forthcoming with any kind of explanation so I had to initiate. "So…you felt like taking a stroll in Boston during class hours, like me, and just happened to stumble into Tealuxe, again like me?"

I tried to keep my face neutral but his cryptic smiles were driving me over the edge. I was about to throw my question at him again when an almost familiar voice sounded from beside me.

"You do realize you can't really pierce him with your stare right?"

What else could I have expected? Turning myself slightly to the side so that I was facing him, I retorted, "And you do realize that stalking me is really more creepy than flattering, right?"

"Who said anything about stalking you? We just happened to see you come in here as we strolled by and thought you might like some company." Reid said as he sat down and pushed a fresh cup of tea towards me.

I eyed the tea for a few seconds wondering if he could have done anything to it, since I hadn't been watching while he got it. Finally coming to the conclusion that they had absolutely no motive to do me harm and probably no interest in me as a girl, seeing how the female population at Spencer was throwing itself at the last two "sons of Ipswich," Caleb Danvers and Pogue Perry being no longer available, I took a careful sip of the drink.

It was good; it had a slight tinge of mango flavor and just the right amount of sweetness. "Okay, let's say I believe you. There still is no reason for you to want to come and keep me company, we're not friends. To be more accurate: neither of you probably knew I even existed until this morning."

"Well it was hard not to notice how you were staring at Reid this morning," Tyler finally spoke up.

"So he does speak," I couldn't help but note with just a hint of sarcasm. "So what if I was looking at him? Lots of girls do."

"But not you." Again it was Tyler who spoke.

"Which brings me back to – I didn't know I registered in your minds."

"To be completely honest, I didn't really know who you were aside from your name and the fact that you'd transferred in, but Tyler here knew more and he thought your sudden interest in me was weird," Reid said.

I looked over to Tyler lounging in his chair somehow graceful and bashful. "So you noticed, eh?"

He just smiled at me and just like that my irritation was back. Tyler rubbed me the wrong way; he smiled too much.

We lapsed into silence again, and I took that opportunity to sip my tea and think of a better way to formulate my thoughts into words so that I could get answers. "So my interest, in you, made you interested. I must be special since none other girls' attention seem to generate such a response from either of you."

"Sorry, but no, it's actually the reason behind your interest that really caught our attention," Reid said looking more serious than he had before.

"You basically want to know why I'm suddenly noticing in you," I stated rather than asked.

"Pretty much."

I looked from one to the other. Why would my looking at Reid seem so unusual? Even though I didn't ogle him like many of the other girls did, it didn't warrant such a reaction. "Well it could be that both of you have legions of groupies in the school and I was wondering what made them all drool after the pair of you. It could also be that I was trying to figure out how the two of you and your other two best friends always seem be on top of everything. Or better yet maybe I already know something about Reid and was thinking of the best way to blackmail him. Why not just ask? It's a much easier way to get answers."

They both shrugged as if they expected me to know. "Well," I said having had my share of frustration for the day, "it was nice speaking with both of you, but I have to cut this short seeing as how this is going nowhere and I'd rather not waste my time trying to divulge any secrets from the pair of you." I got up, picked up my bag, and left resisting the urge to look back to check if they were coming after me.

"She knows."

"It seems like it. Now, what do we do about it?"

A/N: Chap 2 done yay! Hum, I might come back and change some of it I'm not sure I like the way I ended it, but it's pretty late and I have classes early…I'll have to wait. I just wanted to give you something. Hum…I'm also looking for a beta reader, if anyone would like the job let me know. Chap 1 does need revising…I'll try to answer questions tomorrow, but sleep calls.

TBC


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: Unfortunately I still own nothing.

Chapter 3: Of Secret Identities

Sneaking out of Spencer was always so much easier than sneaking back in; they were always more vigilant when in came to people coming into the school. I'd parked my car in town and was walking the two miles that separated it from the school. I knew I looked crazy, but I couldn't help looking over my shoulder now and again, expecting to see Reid or Tyler pop out of nowhere. Not that I thought they didn't have anything better to do, but I always thought that previous behavior was the best predictor for future behavior and they'd done it twice already…

I frowned as I kept walking. Why the sudden interest? Before this afternoon, I couldn't remember a time when I'd exchanged more than two words with either the sons or their girlfriends. Even then it was usually some comment on the weather or to borrow a pencil. No bonding of any kind had ever happened. We didn't have any friends in common as far as I knew. We'd been in a few of the same classes last year, which wasn't much of a coincidence with about a hundred students per grade, aside from that, however, I'd barely even breathed the same air as them.

Why? Why now?

Needless to say, I didn't buy the reasons they'd given me.

I took a deep breath, trying to release my pent up frustration, as I made my way to the main door. I poked my head in first and quickly scanned the area. I managed not to get decapitated by the door, which was not an easy task with ancient massive oak doors and a lot of shopping bags. Having made sure no one would catch me, I ran to my dorm room, lugging along all my stuff. I probably would have done better to leave them in the car for later.

In the safety of my room, I threw my stuff on the bed and pulled out my zen mp3. I'd already skipped most of the afternoon classes and didn't see why missing two more would make a difference.

I tried to think. What could their secret be? What could I know that would make them so nervous?

This was one mystery I could not let go off.

---------------------------------------------------

Sitting with Julie at our usual table at Nicky's, I decided to give up.

Two weeks had already gone by and I wasn't much further along in my investigation. I'd managed to avoid anymore unwanted encounters with Reid and Tyler, but I hadn't even made a dent in their mystery. Opting to observe them from afar, there wasn't much I'd seen that I hadn't known before: part of the school's winning swim team, childhood friends, rich, beautiful, the list went on. They each had their own insanely large, there was no other word for it, band of worshipers. They were the elite of the school in just about everything, only one person was more "privileged" than them and that was Kate. But, then again, she was dating Pogue.

I'd tried looking up some of their family history in the library, sure to find something; one of Caleb's ancestors had founded the school after all. What little I found there was disappointing. The only things of some interest were the rumors of witchcraft that had surrounded their families during the Salem witch trials. But then again, it would have been stranger if their families _hadn't_ been accused of anything.

Maybe I'd been a little paranoid about the whole thing.

"Well that's unlucky," Julie commented looking over my shoulder as she played with the straw of her coke.

"What is?" I asked.

"That's girl's skirt just flew up," she answered looking away. She smirked, "no underwear."

My eyebrows shot up. As I turned to see the person whose misfortune it was, something caught my eye. Three of the sons of Ipswich were gathered around a pool table and the one with long hair, Pogue Parry, was collecting a pile of bills much to the displeasure of Reid and Tyler. It looked like they'd been betting on what the girl's underwear would look like.

Had one of them somehow managed to flip the girl's skirt?

New commotion drew my attention once more to the elite group. Caleb had joined them and seemed to be in a heated argument with Reid. The others were rolling their eyes at the familiar scene.

Not that I was for flipping girl's skirts and checking out their underwear, but why was Mr. Danvers so angry? Boys will be boys and all that jazz.

That's when a thought occurred to me. Could this be their secret? I tried to recall how they interacted, familiar gestures, habits. They were close, everybody knew that, but what was it that kept them so close? Reid and Tyler I could understand, but the other two...

No. It was too outrageous.

What about Kate and Sarah?. An Ellie-Marco thing maybe?

"Where are you going?" Julie asked as I suddenly got up.

"Just going to check something," I answered vaguely, waving a hand in her direction.

I walked up to Tyler and drew him aside.

"I take it you're done hiding from us," he stated, leaning back against one of the pool tables in the back of the bar. A smile tugged at his lips. He was teasing me.

I gave him a deadpan look. "Funny."

His grin widened. I was perpetually amusing to him.

"So…is there a particular reason you're here or do you just like being around me?" he asked spreading his arms in a gesture that belied the words. Reid was a bad influence on this boy.

Normally I would have walked away, but I wanted to put my theory to the test. Asking straight out was out of the question in this crowded bar. "You and the other are pretty close huh?" I hedged as I moved next to him.

"Yeah." He stretched out the word, looking puzzled.

"How close?" I continued my questioning.

"Does this conversation have a point?" he asked instead of answering, looking at me strangely.

I cocked my head to the side, letting my gaze settle on his shoulder, unable to meet his disturbingly blue eyes for too long. "Humor me."

"Close. Closer than brothers." He paused, looking for inspiration. "It's hard to explain."

"Would it be about right to say that you guys have a 'bond' ur...out of the norm?" I asked looking up to gauge his reaction.

For the first time he looked alarmed. "What do you mean?"

"Tyler, I know you guys aren't what you seem..to be." He jumped away from the table, tensing.

"Don't worry, I won't say anything." I continued as if he hadn't reacted and began walking away before he could deny it.

Who would have believed it?

The sons of Ipswich were gay.

A/N: This isn't betaed yet, I need to find out whether or not the person who'd volunteered to do it, is still willing...since it's been...months...

Secondly the Ellie-Marco thing, you have to have watched Degrassi to get it. They were friends, Marco was gay and asked Ellie to pretend to be his girlfriend so people wouldn't know.

Review please!


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: Don't own the covenant or its characters.

A/N: Thanks so much for the reviews! They keep me going. Also many thanks to my beta, scarletwithak, you're the best for putting up with my unfinished and grammatically incorrect work. On to the story.

Chapter 4: Keeping secrets secret

I went back to the table where Julie was quietly sipping her coke. "What was that about?" she asked once I was within hearing range. "Tyler looks like you just announced you ran over his cat on purpose."

"I've had enough fun for one night," I said changing the subject to evade the question. "I'm going to head back," I continued, grabbing my jacket off the back of my seat

She nodded quickly, gulping the last of her drink. "Gimme a second, I'm coming with you." She was trying to subtly peek at the pool tables every now and again as she gathered her things. "I'm kinda tired."

The tone of her voice suggested that it wasn't the only reason she wanted to leave, piquing my curiosity. I looked back at the pool area.

Reid was teaching one of his groupies how to play; making a show of leaning into the girl as she positioned her cue and batted her eyes at him. He grinned in return and I almost believed he _wasn't_ gay.

I turned my attention back to my roommate and saw that she was no longer pretending not to stare. "Let's go then," I tried to pull her attention away from the scene, "I need some peace and quiet."

I left a generous tip for the waitress on the table, per custom, knowing what they had to deal with from some of the people at Spenser. I grabbed the still staring Julie and we made our way out and into the cool fall night. The drive back was quiet, she didn't say anything but it was obvious what or rather _who_ she was thinking off as she stared out into the night. I needed to find a way to make her stop liking him. Nothing would come out of the situation: her pining away for a guy who didn't even like girls. The problem was that I needed to do it without telling her the whole of it.

I could have done without the drama.

Back in our room, I was trying to concentrate on _Kushiel's Justice_, my current literary obsession, when Julie, who'd been quiet so far, spoke up from her side of the room.

"What do you think about Reid?"

_Into guys_. "Garwin?" I tried to sound neutral.

"Is there another one?"

"He's not…you know…bad looking." It was probably the understatement of the week, but I couldn't say what I really thought.

My roommate sent me a "you're kidding" look before reformulating her question, enunciating. "Elaborate. What do you think of him as a _person_?"

I tried to come up with an honest response that wouldn't be tainted by my recent discovery. "I…he seems okay, but I don't really know him." Good beginning, neutral. "I think we've exchanged a total of five sentences, at most, so I couldn't say for sure...Strikes me as a jerk though." I glanced across the room to gauge her reaction. "Why do you ask?"

"No reason," she answered, still lying on her back, making it hard for me to see her face.

I snorted. "Sure, and you _don't_ have a crush on him."

"Am I that transparent?" she asked wistfully.

"Truth or truth-truth?" I moved to sit cross-legged facing her corner of the room.

"Truth-truth."

"Only reason I didn't notice sooner is, well…because I'm me." I hated knowing myself so well sometimes. "And in case you didn't already know: I'm not very observant…well at least usually, I do have my moments," I added thinking of my recent Nancy Drew work.

She made a rather unladylike comment about airheads.

"Well I make it up by being subtle. As in I would never blatantly stare at my crush from across the room as he played pool with one of his groupies." The goad was worth being at the receiving end of one of her deadlier glares. "What do you see in him anyway?" I asked, truly curious.

She was quiet for a long time.

"It's the whole bad-boy-with-redeemable-qualities thing isn't it?" I ventured and got a pillow thrown at me for my efforts.

"I don't hear you denying it."

She laughed, sitting up in bed. "It's only partially 'the whole bad boy thing'," she quoted the air as she spoke. "It's just…I _know_ there's more to him than he lets on."

I couldn't keep the disbelief off my face, making her laugh once more. "Well then, you know something I don't." I flopped back into bed, only to drift into the peaceful world of sleep a few minutes later.

---------------------------------------------

A week later, Julie and I were having what had become a routine argument.

"You better tell me what's going on."

"I don't know what you're talking about. There's nothing happening between us."

Julie snorted derisively, obviously not believing me. "Riiiiight." She stretched the word into two syllables. "You're going to tell me that since Tuesday, Reid and Tyler just happened to decide to eat lunch at the table where we usually eat and randomly talk to us."

"Yes?" I answered throwing some books on my bed. It was a plausible explanation…or so I kept telling myself.

She leaned against the vanity next to me and the raised The Eyebrow of Suspicion. "Uh-huh."

"For the last time," I said, peeved, as I shoved books for my afternoon classes into my bag, "nothing is happening between Tyler Sims and me or any _other_ son of Ipswich, depending on which rumor you're referring to. I haven't spoken more than maybe twice to any of them since I've been here. And each time it was a very stimulating conversation that involved me asking them where a class was or something just as trivial. Stop looking like you don't believe me." I was being a little less than truthful, but it was for a good cause.

She walked out of the room still looking suspicious. "I hope you realize you're a terrible liar."

I glared at her as I followed and locked the door. "Am not. Not that it has anything to do with this conversation."

I wasn't sure she'd heard my last comment since her attention was riveted on something over my shoulder. Her eyes had a definite twinkle to them when she looked at me again.

She smirked slowly, making me even more nervous. "Two guesses as to who's coming this way, right now."

I must have looked horrified because she burst out laughing. I twisted around to confirm that the identity of the person. And it was _He_.

My so-called best friend gave me a pointed look. "Tell me again that nothing is going on."

"Do not leave me alone with him." I commanded swinging back to face her.

Julie, however, never one to be cowed by my person, adjusted the straps of her backpack and skipped away instead. "She's all yours," she called out to Tyler, making me think fondly of Chinese finger torture instruments.

"Et tu, Brute?" I called at her back as she sauntered away with a final wave to me.

I groaned and rested my forehead on the door, resisting the urge to bang my head against it, repeatedly. The situation was getting ridiculous, not to mention creepy. Tyler and his friends had been paying particular attention to me for the past week. Attention I could have done without since it had in turn garnered me more than my share of feminine glares and subtle snubs. I'd promised to keep his secret. What more could he want from me?

"You okay?" An all too familiar voice asked from my right.

I closed my eyes and fought the urge to look at him and his pretty eyes. "Go away."

The hallway was silent, which meant he'd opted to ride out my mood and stay where he was. "I don't hear footsteps moving away," I said, hoping he'd get the hint.

I could still feel him close by. Finally, I looked up and tried to look menacing. "That was your cue to leave."

He smiled that annoyingly pleasant smile of his. "I know. Let's go, I need food."

I didn't move. "I said I wouldn't say anything. You and yours don't need to be around all the time."

He rubbed the back of his neck looking bashful. "I don't know what you're talking about."

I sniffed and tried my best to stare him down while looking over his shoulder. I was pretty sure I'd end up ogling him if I were to make eye contact, I bad habit I'd acquired over the past week; one that needed to be eradicated.

He sighed. "Not very subtle, huh?"

"About as subtle as Aaron when he's hitting on me."

He winced. "Well, it _was_ Reid's idea. He said you'd be flattered by our attention and well…you'd be more likely to cooperate."

"Uh-huh. And you went along with this obviously ridiculous plan because…" Tyler seemed smarter than that.

"Would you believe me if I said it was just because I liked you?"

"Don't try to look all innocent, I'm not falling for it." I warned.

"How'd you do on the history test," he asked conversationally, switching topics, as he grabbed one of my arms and began leading me towards the cafeteria.

"Fine. And we weren't done there." I tried to slap his hand away, to no avail. "Personal space!"

He finally let go, only to put his arm around my waist. "Better?"

"I hate you." I grumbled unhappily, but let him maneuver my person through the cafeteria anyway. "What happened to shy, bashful Tyler? I like him better."

"Well, having someone know your deepest darkest secret tends to make a person less self-conscious," he quipped.

"Not my fault Reid's so obvious and Caleb's reactions aren't exactly subtle either. Someone was bound to find out that you guys aren't um…right handed like the rest of us." We'd entered the cafeteria.

"Pogue and I always warned them that their bickering was bound to get us noticed. But they're like fire and ice; it's impossible for them _not_ to."

I nodded, having been exposed to the group more often, even if it had been only a week, I understood what he meant. Caleb and Reid's personalities clashed and since they were so close they had even more ammunition to use against one another. "If it's any comfort they say that fighting is caring."

He snorted. "I wish they wouldn't. They might end up killing each other with all their loving and caring."

I grinned despite my intentions to be as unpleasant as possible in the hope that he would leave me alone.

"Over here," yelled Kate Tuney from beside Julie. It looked like another member of _their_ group had decided to sit join us for lunch. I clucked my tongue in annoyance. This new development was fairly counter productive considering my goal was to get them to leave me alone.

Tyler answer with a small wave and moved towards our usual table. I slapped him upside the head, making him jump away from me with a yelp. I ignored his muttered protest at my treatment and went to sit down. He'd deserved it.

"Where's Pogue?" Tyler asked Kate as he sat down some distance away from me.

"Probably at Hell's Angels 'R' us. He said something new came out for the bike and left without another word."

She sounded annoyed. If our positions had been switched, I'd have felt the same way. It couldn't be easy to have to compete for Pogue's attention with those contenders: bikes _and_ guys. They'd always looked so in love to me…maybe Pogue was actually bisexual?

I laughed to myself, I was getting carried away with my imagination.

I glanced up and caught Tyler looking at me funny, he probably thought I was crazy. I smiled, throwing him off balance and returned to my meal. I wasn't planning on being the next Sarah or Kate, but I could understand the temptation. They were all so pretty, but I wanted someone who'd want me back.

A/N: So that didn't take too long. Already working on the next chapter, it should be out next week or the one after. Working on my other fic also, though that one may take a while seeing how I seem to have hit a brick wall where it's concerned.

Review and make my week!


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